Iconic Band’s First New Studio Album in 20 Years to be Released Worldwide

March 11, 2016 with The SSE Arena, Wembley Concert and Film Premiere in London March 12, 2016

Iconic rock powerhouse X Japan will release the band’s first new studio album in 20 years and will appear live in Paris tomorrow to celebrate the announcement. The highly anticipated album will be released worldwide March 11, 2016 in conjunction with #XDAY, a special album release concert and worldwide film premiere event at London’s The SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday, March 12, 2016. X Japan founder and drummer Yoshiki will make a personal appearance at Paris’s Japan Expo at Paris-Nord Vilepinte Exhibition Center, one of Europe’s premiere Japanese Expo events, to share further details about this announcement with fans.

Yoshiki will be joined by X Japan’s lead vocalist Toshi at a rare live appearance together in the UK this Saturday, July 11th at London’s very own Hyper Japan at the O2. The duo will debut a song from the new album at a special unplugged performance. In addition, they will premiere the first teaser for the band’s highly anticipated documentary film to London fans.

The much talked about return to the studio comes after decades of highs and lows in the band’s tumultuous and legendary timeline. Through triumph and tragedy, X Japan has remained resolute about reuniting in the studio to produce a follow up to their 1996 studio album Dahlia, their fifth studio release that went platinum in Japan. Dahlia preceded the band’s break up in 1997 following their fifth consecutive sold out New Year’s Eve concert at Japan’s famed 55,000 seat Tokyo Dome.

In addition to the long-awaited studio album release, X Japan will premiere its untitled film on March 12th at the #XDAY event prior to the band’s performance. The film chronicles the evolution and groundbreaking history of Japan’s most iconic rock band, from their start to their current projects - including 2014’s magnificent Madison Square Garden concert, the band’s first US show in 4 years. The film is produced by (UK-based) Passion Pictures’ John Battsek, critically-acclaimed producer of the 2013 BAFTA and Academy Award-winning feature documentary Searching For Sugar Man. The documentary is directed by Stephen Kijak who was commissioned by The Rolling Stones to direct their 2010 documentary Stones in Exile chronicling the making of their 1972 album Exile on Main St. which premiered in Cannes and on BBC1. He is also well known in the UK for his earlier work Scott Walker – 30 Century Man, which was executive produced by David Bowie and earned great critical acclaim.

X Japan’s decision to celebrate their record release in London with an epic, arena-sized multi-media album release experience at The SSE Arena, Wembley suits the globally renowned rockers, who are known for doing everything in a big way. X Japan is regarded as the visionary force that founded the Visual Kei genre of music expression and have long been celebrated by some of the most devoted and ardent fans in the J-Rock, Heavy Metal, Glam Rock and Anime worlds.

X Japan is the most successful rock band in Japanese history, and that is not a statement made lightly. The band has sold more than 30 million albums; singles and videos combined, sold out Japan’s 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome 18 times – so far – and have played to tens of thousands of fans outside of Japan. In the band’s early days their look and sound sparked a global interest in entertainment, especially with the Japanese cultural rock phenomenon, “Visual-Kei,” a movement X Japan pioneered that spread globally.
X Japan formed in 1982 (calling themselves X) by Yoshiki and Toshi while they were still teenagers. Over the next 13 years, the band released five studio albums – Vanishing Vision (1988), Blue Blood (1989), Jealousy (1991), Art of Life (1993) and Dahlia (1996), as well as six live albums, ten best hits albums and 20 DVD releases. X Japan was the first Japanese band to achieve mainstream success while signed to an independent label. The band was so popular they became a cultural phenomenon.

In the fall of 1997, at the height of their success, the band broke up. Four months later, Hide, X Japan’s original lead guitarist, was found dead in his Tokyo apartment. At his funeral, more than 50,000 fans came to mourn his passing. In early 2007 Yoshiki and Toshi resumed communication and later that year X Japan officially reformed. The band launched its reunion in 2008 with 3 nights at the Tokyo Dome. 2 years later, X Japan filmed a music video on the rooftop of Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre with a throng of some 8,000 U.S. fans taking part in the shoot on Hollywood Blvd. But it was on August 8, 2010 that X Japan performed in front of a mainstream American crowd for the first time at Lollapalooza. Immediately following the festival, X Japan played the biggest concert in its history, selling out two consecutive shows at Japan’s Nissan Stadium, filling 140,000 seats. The band’s first North American tour wrapped with a monumental New York date selling out The Roseland Ballroom on Oct. 11, 2010.

In June 2011, X Japan kicked off a European Tour at London’s Shepherd’s Bush (selling -out the venue in 30 minutes). The tour continued to Paris and Utrecht wrapping in Berlin before the band traveled back to Japan to play the famed Summer Sonic Festival. That same year the world tour took them to South America where they sold out shows playing to massive crowds in Santiago, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Lima and Mexico City. X Japan then returned to Asia playing arena shows in Seoul, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei and Bangkok. In 2012 X Japan was the first Japanese band to take home the prize for “Best International Band” at the Golden Gods Awards held in the U.S.

In 2014 X Japan headlined a colossal show at New York’s famed Madison Square Garden in the U.S. Now, in 2015, X Japan is gearing up to announce the biggest event in the band’s history.

The Current line up of X Japan is Yoshiki/drums, piano; Toshi/vocals; Pata/guitars; Heath/bass; and Sugizo/guitars, violin